Meat tenderizer with force limiting apparatus and orthogonal blade set

ABSTRACT

A mechanical meat tenderizer having the features of a force-limiting apparatus and an orthogonal blade set. The tenderizer comprises a set of orthogonal knife cutting blades and a reciprocable head for releasably holding individual knife cutting blades for insertion into meat to be tenderized. The reciprocable head comprises a meat securing meat such as a hold-down plate, a blade orienting member such as an orientation plate for orienting the knives, and a friction plate for providing a predetermined frictional release force for independently positioning and holding the set of orthogonal blades so that when any one of the orthogonal blades encounters a release force exceeding the predetermined release force the blade is released and not damaged. The orthogonal blade set preferably includes straight blades and orthogonal blades, each having a spring or frictional member for frictionally engaging a respective portion of a friction bar.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to meat tenderizers with a force-limitedapparatus for tenderizing meat. More particularly, the invention relatesto a meat tenderizer with a non-magnetic force-limited apparatus fortenderizing meat that utilizes a series of coated bars and a set oforthogonal blades, which is an improvement over known apparatuses.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] In the art of mechanically tenderizing meat, it is known that totenderize a piece of tough meat a meat tenderizing apparatus typicallystabs or cuts the meat with a plurality of sharp blades as is shown inU.S. Pat. No. 4,169,300 to McCullough, and herein incorporated byreference. In addition, McCullough teaches that to protect the bladesfrom damage when encountering bone in the meat a mechanism of springsand ball bearings can be used to allow any blade to be released if boneor other hard matter is encountered. However, McCullough's devicerequires numerous small parts and is difficult and expensive to assembleand maintain.

[0003] In U.S. Pat. No. 4,437,207 to Ross, a plurality ofcobalt-sumarian alloy magnets that magnetically couple with blade“poles” made from special silicon iron alloys are used. Ross thusprovides an alternate mechanism for achieving the same result; that is,to allow any blade to be released when bone or other hard matter isencountered by the blades. However, the magnets disclosed by Ross areexpensive and many are needed to make the device. Furthermore, themagnetic mechanism is not durable because the “poles” attached to theblades and made of the special silicon iron alloy corrode and fail toeffectively couple with the magnets. In addition, meat tenderizingblades often wear out or are damaged under normal operating conditionsand need to be replaced. It is expensive to replace the blades requiredby the Ross patent because of the pole made of a costly alloy.

[0004] However, the present inventor has found that the most costefficient mechanical meat tenderizer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.6,120,368 to Ter-Minassian, the entire disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference. The meat tenderizer disclosed byTer-Minassian has a force limited apparatus for protecting the bladescomprising a friction plate manufactured with a plurality of squareholes for frictionally engaging a plurality of meat cutting blades. Eachsquare hole frictionally engages one blade, and each blade is made witha frictional portion for engaging two opposing walls of a correspondingsquare hole. The frictional portion of each blade is a spring formed aspart of the blade.

[0005] The Ter-Minassian meat tenderizer has the advantages that it ispractical and cost effective to manufacture, durable, easy to clean andeasy to maintain; however, the device has several problems. First, tomake the square holes in the friction plate, it is most cost efficientto use a punch. Other technologies can be used, such as lasers or highvelocity water drills, but these methods are expensive. The drawback ofusing a punch to make the square holes is that the holes are lessuniform. Small variations in the geometry of the hole on the order of athousandth of an inch can have dramatic consequences. Specifically, ithas been found that the ideal release force on each blade is about 4pounds. At this force, each blade can perform its cutting functionoptimally with minimal risk of damage to the blade. When theTer-Minassian friction plate is made using a punch to form the squareholes, the force required to frictionally disengage the springs of theblades from the square holes averages about 4 pounds, but the varianceis +/−2 pounds. Consequently, some of the blades are prone to damagewhen not released at 4 pounds of force and other blades are releasedprematurely and fail to perform an adequate cut.

[0006] In addition, once a blade has been released by the force-limitingapparatus, a plate is used to reset all of the released blades back intoeach respective square hole before further cuts can be made into themeat to be tenderized. To perform its optimal tenderizing function, eachTer-Minassian meat tenderizer utilizes hundreds of blades; therefore,over a thousand pounds of force may been needed to reset the blades.This great amount of force required for reset is another drawback of theTer-Minassian meat tenderizer.

[0007] The present invention endeavors to provide an improved mechanicalmeat tenderizer with a force limited apparatus for protecting the bladesthat maintains the advantages of the Ter-Minassian device whileovercoming the drawbacks of the prior art machines.

[0008] Accordingly, a primary object of the present invention is toovercome the disadvantages of the prior art mechanical meat tenderizers.

[0009] Another object of the present invention is to provide amechanical meat tenderizer with an improved force limiting apparatusthat is practical and cost effective to manufacture.

[0010] Another object of the present invention is to provide amechanical meat tenderizer that is both durable and reliable.

[0011] Another object of the present invention is to provide amechanical meat tenderizer that is both easy to clean and easy tomaintain.

[0012] Another object of the invention is to provide a mechanical meattenderizer that achieves a substantially uniform release force for everyblade of a plurality of blades.

[0013] Another object of the invention is to provide a mechanical meattenderizer that has a plurality of blades that reset by applying aminimal force.

[0014] Another object of the invention is to provide a mechanical meattenderizer that functions using blades that are easy and inexpensive toreplace.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0015] In accordance with the above objectives, the present inventionprovides an apparatus for mechanically tenderizing meat comprising (1) aplurality of elongated cutting blades having cutting edges formed on oneend thereof, a frictional member proximate another end thereof, and alongitudinal axis; and

[0016] (2) a reciprocatable head holding the plurality of cutting bladesand movable from a first position wherein the plurality of blades isretracted to a second position wherein the plurality of blades isextended. The reciprocatable head comprises (a) a meat securing member,(b) a friction plate, and (c) a blade orienting member disposed toorient the blades in spaced relationship so that the longitudinal axisof each blade is aligned substantially parallel to the longitudinal axisof each other blade. The friction plate further comprises a plurality offriction bars disposed to frictionally engage the friction members ofthe blades, wherein each bar of the plurality of bars frictionallyengages the frictional member of each blade of a respective set of theblades so that a predetermined force is provided for independentlyholding each of the blades in a fixed position with respect to thefriction plate as the blades move to the second position.

[0017] The desired objectives are also achieved by one embodiment of themechanical meat tenderizer of the present invention by employing animproved force-limiting apparatus and sets of orthogonal blades. Theforce limiting apparatus comprises a friction plate comprising a frameplate having an upper face and a lower face, with a plurality oflongitudinal grooves formed on the lower face wherein the plurality oflongitudinal grooves comprise two lateral grooves and at least onecenter groove so that a longitudinal ridge is disposed between every twolongitudinal grooves; and, a plurality of blade holes formed in theframe plate wherein each blade hole opens onto the upper face and thelower face and is centered on a corresponding longitudinal ridge so thateach blade hole is bordered by at least one island formed from a portionof the corresponding longitudinal ridge, and so that each blade hole hasa portion formed in two adjacent grooves of the plurality oflongitudinal grooves. Furthermore, the friction plate comprises aplurality of bars disposed respectively in the plurality of longitudinalgrooves, wherein each bar encroaches upon and narrows a correspondingnumber of respective blade holes so that two adjacent bars providecorresponding two square faces for frictionally engaging a spring of acutting blade that is disposed within a corresponding blade hole.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment, each bar is coated with a hard, lowfriction finish, such as CASIDIAM™.

[0019] In another preferred embodiment, the friction plate furthercomprises a face plate comprising a outer face and an inner face, and aplurality of holes formed in the face plate, wherein each hole opens onthe outer face and the inner face and so that each hole corresponds to arespective blade hole of the frame plate.

[0020] In another preferred embodiment, the set of orthogonal bladescomprises a plurality of orthogonal blade pairs disposed in theplurality of blade holes, wherein each orthogonal blade pair includes afirst blade and an orthogonal second blade, wherein each first blade isdisposed on the frame plate to be adjacent to a corresponding orthogonalsecond blade.

[0021] In yet another embodiment, the present invention provides amethod for tenderizing meat. The method comprises the step of (1)providing an apparatus comprising: (a) a plurality of elongated cuttingblades having cutting edges formed on one end thereof, a frictionalmember proximate another end thereof, and a longitudinal axis; and (b) areciprocatable head holding the plurality of cutting blades and movablefrom a first position wherein the plurality of blades is retracted to asecond position wherein the plurality of blades is extended. Thereciprocatable head comprises (i) a meat securing member, (ii) afriction plate, and (iii) a blade orienting member disposed to orientthe blades in spaced relationship so that the longitudinal axis of eachblade is aligned substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of eachother blade. The friction plate comprises a plurality of friction barsdisposed to frictionally engage the friction members of the blades,wherein each bar of the plurality of bars frictionally engages thefrictional member of each blade of a respective set of the blades sothat a predetermined force is provided for independently holding each ofthe blades in a fixed position with respect to the friction plate as theblades move to the second position. The method further comprises thesteps of (2) holding meat with the meat securing member; and (3)reciprocating the reciprocatable head from the first position to thesecond position to mechanically tenderize the meat.

[0022] In a still further embodiment, the reciprocating step includesreleasing any blade of the set of orthogonal blades that encounters arelease force exceeding the predetermined force for holding each of theblades in a fixed position.

[0023] In another embodiment, the method further comprises, the steps ofreturning the head and the blades to the first position; resetting anyreleased blades using a press plate; and repeating the reciprocatingstep.

[0024] Further objects, features and advantages of the present inventionwill become apparent from the Detailed Description of PreferredEmbodiments, which follows, when considered together with the attacheddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025]FIG. 1 is an exploded view of the improved head according to thepresent invention.

[0026]FIG. 2 is bottom view of the friction plate according to thepresent invention.

[0027]FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the friction plate according to thepresent invention with the face plate removed.

[0028]FIG. 4 is a plan view of the friction plate according to thepresent invention.

[0029]FIG. 5 is a magnified view of the area B of the friction plateshown in FIG. 2.

[0030]FIG. 6 is a partial cross sectional view of the friction plate ofFIG. 2 taken along the X-X axis with cutting blades in place.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] The apparatus of the present invention is a mechanical meattenderizer with a force limiting apparatus and a set of orthogonalblades. The mechanical meat tenderizer includes a reciprocable head 10having a set of mutually orthogonal blades 26 including a plurality ofpairs of blades including straight blades 36 and orthogonal blades 38 asshown in FIG. 1, an operational press plate (not shown) for resettingthe blades, and a drive (not shown) for operating the head 10. FIG. 1illustrates the improved head 10 of the meat tenderizing apparatus ofthe present invention. Head 10 includes a friction plate 14, anorientation plate 16, and meat securing member or hold-down plate 19.The hold-down plate 19 is a base plate for the head 10 for abuttingagainst and holding down a piece of meat in the mechanical meattenderizer as is well known. Two guide bars 21 have threaded ends andare attached at one end to plate 19 by means of fasteners such as thecombination of threaded locknuts 12 and C-clips 13 a and washers 13 billustrated. Plates 14 and 16 have guide holes 14 a and 16 arespectively formed therethrough for receiving the bars 21. Nuts 12 arealso attached to the remaining threaded ends of bars 21 to retain theplates 14 and 16 on the bars 21.

[0032] Plates 14 and 16 are attached to one another to form a singleunit that slides up and down the guide bars 21. Fasteners 20, such asscrews or bolts that pass through attachment holes 16 b and hollowspacers 22 and threadedly engage threaded or tapped holes 14 b, are usedto assemble plates 14 and 16 together to form a single slidable unit.Furthermore, slide bearings 24 are secured into guide holes 14 a tofacilitate sliding the single unit along bars 21.

[0033] Friction plate 14 includes an array of blade positioningapertures 28 (or “blade holes”) into which a set of orthogonal blades 26are positioned (see also FIG. 6). Blade positioning apertures 28 andfriction plate 14 will be discussed in detail below. Friction plate 14positions the blades to form an array for tenderizing meat and providesa force limiting apparatus permitting individual blades to be releasedif a predetermined force is exceeded when the blade encounters hardmaterial in the meat such has bone, cartilage, frozen meat portions,etc.

[0034] The blade orienting member, in a this embodiment an orientationplate 16 has an array of blade orientation apertures 30, whichcorrespond, one-to-one to the array of blade positioning apertures 28.In other words, each blade 36, 38 is positioned in a respective one ofthe positioning apertures 28 so that the abutment portion 36 a, 38 a ofthe blade abuts against the friction plate 14 as shown in FIG. 6; and,the tip portion 36 b, 38 b of the blade passes through a correspondingorientation aperture 30. As is known in the art, each orientationaperture 30 is cross-shaped, which allows adjacent blades to be orientedso that the cutting surfaces 36 c, 38 c are orthogonal (“perpendicular”)to each other as shown in FIG. 6. The purpose of the orientation plate16 is to stabilize and support the long blades 36 and 38 so that eachblade maintains its proper orientation and is less likely to bend.

[0035] The meat securing member, in this embodiment a hold-down plate19, also has an array of blade thrusting apertures 32 through which thecutting portions 36 c, 38 c of the blades 36, 38 are thrust duringoperation to tenderize the meat. The head 10 is constructed so that eachpositioning aperture 28 is linearly aligned with a respectiveorientation aperture 30 and a respective thrusting aperture 32.Consequently, any blade 36 or 38 can be placed into any one of thepositioning apertures 28 and properly positioned into the correspondinglinearly aligned respective orientation aperture 30 and thrustingaperture 32.

[0036] In operation, the process of tenderizing includes placing a pieceof meat into the mechanical meat tenderizer and moving the head 10 intoposition to hold down and secure the meat. The slidable single unit 14and 16 and the set of orthogonal blades 26 begin the process in first,or up, position in which the blades are retracted. Then, the drivepushes the single unit comprising plates 14 and 16 down along the guidebars 21 which forces the set of orthogonal blades 26 through the arrayof thrusting apertures 32 to a second extended position and into themeat. During the reciprocating step, from the first to second positions,the process includes releasing any blade that encounters some obstaclein the meat and exceeds a predetermined release force caused by theblade encountering, for example, bone, cartilage, frozen portions, oranything else hard enough to damage the blade. Next, the drive returnsthe single unit up the guide bars 21 so that the set of orthogonalblades 26 returns or reciprocates to the up or first position. Also,either during or after the drive returns the single unit and the set oforthogonal blades back into the first position, the press plate resetsany blades that were released during the reciprocating step. This stepof resetting all released blades is well known in the art. Lastly, byrepeating the step of reciprocating and resetting multiple times, themeat is rapidly, mechanically tenderized.

[0037] At this point, the structure and operation of a portion of thereciprocatable head according to the invention, the friction plate 14,will be described in detail and the relationship between the plate 14and the blades 36 and 38 will be expounded upon. As shown in FIGS. 3 and4, friction plate 14 includes a frame plate 50 and a plurality offriction bars 62, 63 disposed on a lower face 50L of the plate 50. Theframe plate 50 includes guide holes 14 a for receiving the guide bars 21and a portion of each hole 14 a is bordered by a ledge 50 d thatprovides an abutment surface for the retaining nut 12 attached to theend of guide bars 21. Plate 50 also includes the threaded bosses 14 bfor attaching to the fasteners 20.

[0038] A plurality of longitudinal grooves 52, 53 oriented along the Y-Yaxis are formed in plate 50. Grooves 52 are lateral grooves and areabout half the width of the center grooves 53. Separating each groove52, 53 is an interrupted longitudinal ridge 56. Each interrupted ridge56 includes a plurality of islands 58 separated by plate apertures 59.The plate apertures 59 are formed in plate 50 by any number of methods,such as drilling. As shown in FIG. 4, apertures 59 are circular is shapeand open on both the upper face 50 u and the lower face 50L of plate 50(see also FIG. 6). Each aperture 59 is centered along the midlinelongitudinal axis of one of the ridges 56; furthermore, the diameter dof each aperture 59 is greater than the transverse width w of each ridge56. Subsequently, grooves 52 and 53 are formed in the plate 50 so as tointersect with a plurality of the apertures 59. In this manner, theislands 58 are formed and it is evident from FIG. 3 that two opposingwalls of each island are concave and that the other two walls of eachisland are linear.

[0039] From FIGS. 3 and 6 it is shown that friction bars 62, 63 arepositioned into the grooves 52, 53 so that the lateral friction bars 62are fitted into the lateral grooves 52 and the center friction bars 63are fitted into the center grooves 53. Preferably, the bars 62, 63 arepress fitted respectively into grooves 52, 53 and it is evident thatlateral bars 62 are about half the width of the center bars 63.

[0040] Preferably, plate 50 is made of a metal with excellentmachinability characteristics, such as aluminum, although any suitablemetal can be used. The bars 62 and 63 are preferably made of a hardermetal, such as steel, although any suitable hard metal can be used. In apreferred embodiment of the invention, bars 62 and 63 are coated with ahighly lubricious, very hard thin film used for reducing friction. Oneexample of a suitable material for forming the thin film is CASIDIAM™, afilm material composed of carbon, hydrogen and doping elements. Thedesired properties of CASIDIAM™ are disclosed in detail in U.S. Pat. No.5,826,628 to Hamilton, the entire disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference. By making the friction bars 62, 63 out of a hardmetal coated with a lubricious material, the positioning apertures 28can be made to have a fairly uniform frictional effect on eachindividual blade 36 or 38. In practice, it has been found that the wallsof the positioning apertures 28 of the present invention can be made toexert a predetermined frictional force on each blade of substantially 4pounds on average, with a variance of plus or minus one ounce, beforethe blade is released from the aperture. Therefore, if any bladeexperiences more than 4 pounds of force when cutting through meat, thenthat blade should be released from its aperture 28 and pop up. Thisresult is much superior to the square aperture of the prior art(Ter-Minassian) device which can only be made to exert a predeterminedfrictional force on each blade of 4 pounds on average, with a varianceof plus or minus 2 pounds. Consequently, fewer blades are damaged whenapertures 28 are used, than when the prior square apertures are used.

[0041] Another way to describe this feature of the present invention isthat the present invention achieves a predetermined release force ofsubstantially 4 pounds on average because, by definition in thiscontext, the variance among each aperture 28 of the array of apertures28 is only plus or minus one ounce. The prior device of Ter-Minassianachieves a predetermined release force of not substantially 4 pounds onaverage because of the variance among each square aperture of the arrayof square apertures is greater than plus or minus one ounce.

[0042] In a preferred embodiment, friction plate 14 includes faceplate80 attached to the lower face 50L as shown in FIG. 6. Screws, otherfasteners, or any other equivalent means can be used to secure thefaceplate 80 to the plate 50. Faceplate 80 is preferably made ofstainless steel to facilitate friction bar 14 cleaning and retains thepress fitted friction bars 62 and 63 in their respective grooves 52 and53. Faceplate 80 includes an array of face apertures 82 corresponding tothe plate apertures 59 and having the same diameter d as the plateapertures 59. In this manner, the wall of a plate aperture 59 and thewall of a face aperture 82 make up portions of the wall of positioningaperture 28. The remaining portion of the wall of positioning aperture28 is formed by adjacent friction bars as shown in FIG. 6. In otherwords, each positioning aperture 28 is a contiguous hole throughfriction plate 14 and comprises a plate aperture 59 properly alignedwith a corresponding face aperture 82. The narrowest portion of eachpositioning aperture 28 occurs where the friction bars encroach. In thisnarrowest portion, the transverse width of each positioning aperture 28is equal to w, the transverse width of the interrupted ridge 56. Thelongitudinal dimension of each positioning aperture 28 in the narrowestportion is still equal to d, the diameter of the positioning aperture 28outside of the narrowest portion. Therefore, it should be appreciatedthat the positioning aperture 28 is substantially a cylindrical holeoutside of the narrowest portion and has a non-cylindrical hole geometryin the region of the narrowest portion.

[0043] Having described the structure and geometry of the positioningapertures 28 of the present invention, structure and geometry of theblades 36 and 38 will be described as well as the frictional interactionbetween each blade and the walls of the positioning apertures 28. It isnoted that in the preferred embodiment of the invention, the frictionplate 14 includes a face plate 80 so that a portion of each positioningaperture 28 includes a respective face aperture 82; however, withoutdeparting from the spirit and essential function of the invention, theinvention can be practiced without the face plate 80.

[0044] As is best appreciated from FIGS. 1 and 6, the set of orthogonalblades 26 is made up of a plurality of blade pairs 36, 38. Each pairincludes a straight blade 36 and an orthogonal, or twisted, blade 38.Each blade 36, 38 is made of metal and has a respective abutment portion36 a, 38 a, a friction spring or friction member 36 d, 38 d, a tipportion 36 b, 38 b, and a cutting portion 36 c, 38 c. The portions ofeach blade are integrally formed so that each blade is a unitary piece.

[0045] Each abutment portion has a diameter D that is greater than thediameter d of the positioning apertures 28 so that the abutment portionwill rest upon the upper face 50 u of the plate 50. Each spring isformed by two leaf portions and has a taper at each end and a maximumwidth m. It is essential that the maximum width m be greater than thetransverse width w of the narrowest portion of each positioning aperture28. Preferably, the maximum width m is less than the diameter d of theother portions of the positioning aperture 28 so that only the walls ofthe narrowest portion will exert a frictional force upon a respectivespring 36 d or 38 d. As shown in FIG. 6, each blade 36, 38 is positionedinto a positioning aperture 28 with the leaf portions arrangedtransversely in the aperture 28 so that each leaf portion abuts andfrictionally engages a respective one of the friction bars 62, 63.Because width m is greater than width w, the leaf portions necessarilyare compressed towards one another during the process of placing eachblade properly in a respective aperture 28. The compression forceprovided by the leaf portions of each spring results in a frictionalforce exerted by the friction bars on each blade as it passes throughthe narrowest portion of each positioning aperture. Therefore, eachblade 36, 38 must be pressed into position in a respective positioningaperture 28.

[0046] It should be appreciated that an equal amount of force isrequired to push a blade out of its respective positioning aperture aswas required to press the blade into position. When a cutting portion 36c, 38 c encounters bone, tendons, frozen meat portions, etc . . . duringa down thrust of the single slidable unit during operation of themechanical meat tenderizer, the meat may exert an upwards force on theblade 36, 38. When this upwards force (“release force”) exceeds theforce required to press the blade into its positioning aperture, thenthe meat pushes the blade 36, 38 out of the aperture 28. By carefullmanufacture of the positioning apertures 28, any desired substantialpredetermined release force is theoretically attainable. In thiscontext, the substantial predetermined release force is defined as theminimum force generated between the friction bars and the springs thatwould effect a release of a blade from its respective positioningaperture. In practice, a substantial predetermined release force of 4pounds on average is most desirable. When the release force generated bythe meat exceeds the substantial predetermined release force, then theblade is released and pops out of the positioning aperture.

[0047] Another important feature regarding each blade is that thesprings 36 d, 38 d are made so that when each blade 36, 38 is properlypositioned in a respective aperture 28, the abutment portion 36 a, 38 arests on the upper surface 50 u of plate 50 and the maximum width m isdisposed below the friction bars 62, 63 as shown in FIG. 6. Thisrelationship between the maximum width and the friction bars results inno significant frictional force exerted by the bars on the blades whenthe blades have been pressed into place. In addition, during theplacement of the blades into place, it should be appreciated that as themaximum width clears the friction bars the springs decompress. Thetapered geometry of the springs and the inherent tendency of the springsto push back into the uncompressed state actually helps pull each bladeinto the positioning aperture once the maximum width has cleared thefriction bars. Consequently, when the mechanical meat tenderizer has toreset all released blades during operation, the press plate needgenerate an impulse only sufficient to clear the maximum width of eachreleased blade from the friction bars. The result is that thehydraulically operated press plate can perform its function by utilizingsmaller impulses (force exerted for a period of time) and the meattenderizer operates more quietly.

[0048] Lastly, it is noted that the main difference between the straightblades 36 and the orthogonal blades 38 is that the straight blade isstraight so that the cutting portion 36 c is oriented along thelongitudinal axis direction (Y axis) of the friction plate 14. Theorthogonal blade 38 has a twist 38 t so that the cutting portion 38 c isoriented along the direction transverse (A axis) to the longitudinaldirection (Y axis) of the friction plate 14. The results of this bladepair geometry is that each blade 36, 38 is oriented in the frictionplate 14 so that the spring leaf portions may frictionally engage thefriction bars, but the cutting portions 36 c, 38 c are orientedorthogonal to one another so that orthogonal cuts are made in the meat.

[0049] While the present invention has been described with reference tocertain preferred embodiments, one of ordinary skill in the art willrecognize that additions, deletions, substitutions, modifications andimprovements can be made while remaining within the spirit and scope ofthe present invention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for mechanically tenderizing meatcomprising: (1) a plurality of elongated cutting blades having cuttingedges formed on one end thereof, a frictional member proximate anotherend thereof, and a longitudinal axis; and (2) a reciprocatable headholding the plurality of cutting blades and movable from a firstposition wherein the plurality of blades is retracted to a secondposition wherein the plurality of blades is extended, the reciprocatablehead comprising (a) a meat securing member, (b) a friction plate, and(c) a blade orienting member disposed to orient the blades in spacedrelationship so that the longitudinal axis of each blade is alignedsubstantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of each other blade,wherein the friction plate comprises a plurality of friction barsdisposed to frictionally engage the friction members of the blades,wherein each bar of the plurality of bars frictionally engages thefrictional member of each blade of a respective set of the blades sothat a predetermined force is provided for independently holding each ofthe blades in a fixed position with respect to the friction plate as theblades move to the second position.
 2. An apparatus according to claim1, wherein the friction member is a spring.
 3. An apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the friction member is a spring formed by two, leafportions having a taper at each end and a maximum width portion.
 4. Anapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the friction bars are coatedwith a lubricious material.
 5. An apparatus according to claim 4,wherein the lubricious material comprises carbon, hydrogen and dopingelements, the material having a mixture of tetrahedral diamond bonds andtrigonal graphitic bonds.
 6. An apparatus according to claim 4, whereinthe lubricious material is CASIDIAM.
 7. An apparatus according to claim1, wherein the friction plate releases any blade of the plurality ofblades that encounters a release force exceeding the predeterminedforce.
 8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the blade orientingmember is a plate having a plurality of cross-shaped holes correspondingto a plurality of the cutting blades.
 9. An apparatus according to claim1, wherein the friction plate further comprises a face plate.
 10. Anapparatus according to claim 9, wherein the friction plate includes anarray of positioning apertures wherein each blade of the plurality ofcutting blades is positioned in a corresponding one of the positioningapertures and a portion of a respective wall defining each aperture isformed by a portion of a respective friction bar.
 11. An apparatusaccording to claim 10, wherein the portion of the respective frictionbar forms a narrowing in the respective aperture.
 12. An apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the plurality of elongated cutting bladesincludes at least one straight blade and at least one twisted blade. 13.A method for tenderizing meat comprising the steps of (1) providing anapparatus comprising: (a) a plurality of elongated cutting blades havingcutting edges formed on one end thereof, a frictional member proximateanother end thereof, and a longitudinal axis; and (b) a reciprocatablehead holding the plurality of cutting blades and movable from a firstposition wherein the plurality of blades is retracted to a secondposition wherein the plurality of blades is extended, the reciprocatablehead comprising (i) a meat securing member, (ii) a friction plate, and(iii) a blade orienting member disposed to orient the blades in spacedrelationship so that the longitudinal axis of each blade is alignedsubstantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of each other blade,wherein the friction plate comprises a plurality of friction barsdisposed to frictionally engage the friction members of the blades,wherein each bar of the plurality of bars frictionally engages thefrictional member of each blade of a respective set of the blades sothat a predetermined force is provided for independently holding each ofthe blades in a fixed position with respect to the friction plate as theblades move to the second position; (2) holding meat with the meatsecuring member; and (3) reciprocating the reciprocatable head from thefirst position to the second position to mechanically tenderize themeat.
 14. A method for mechanically tenderizing meat according to claim13, wherein the reciprocating step includes releasing any blade of theset of orthogonal blades that encounters a release force exceeding thepredetermined force for holding each of the blades in a fixed position.15. A method for mechanically tenderizing meat according to claim 13,further comprising the steps of: returning the head and the blades tothe first position; resetting any released blades using a press plate;and repeating the reciprocating step.
 16. A method for mechanicallytenderizing meat according to claim 15, wherein, in the resetting step,the friction member of a released blade provides a resetting force toreset the released blade.
 17. An apparatus according to claim 3, whereinthe maximum width portion of each blade is positioned beneath theplurality of friction bars when in the fixed position.
 18. An apparatusaccording to claim 17, wherein the spring provides the predeterminedforce for holding the blade in the fixed position and provides aresetting force for pulling the blade into the fixed position.